The present invention relates to digital television systems, and more particularly, to circuits employed in the digital television receiver for determining whether or not there is co-channel interference from NTSC analog television signals.
A Digital Television Standard published Sep. 16, 1995 by the Advanced Television Subcommittee (ATSC) specifies vestigial sideband (VSB) signals for transmitting digital television (DTV) signals in 6-MHz-bandwidth television channels such as those currently used in over-the-air broadcasting of National Television Subcommittee (NTSC) analog television signals within the United States. The VSB DTV signal is designed so its spectrum is likely to interleave with the spectrum of a co-channel interfering NTSC analog TV signal. This is done by positioning the pilot carrier and the principal amplitude-modulation sideband frequencies of the DTV signal at odd multiples of one-quarter the horizontal scan line rate of the NTSC analog TV signal that fall between the even multiples of one-quarter the horizontal scan line rate of the NTSC analog TV signal, at which even multiples most of the energy of the luminance and chrominance components of a co-channel interfering NTSC analog TV signal will fall. The video carrier of an NTSC analog TV signal is offset 1.25 MHz from the lower limit frequency of the television channel. The carrier of the DTV signal is offset from such video carrier by 59.75 times the horizontal scan line rate of the NTSC analog TV signal, to place the carrier of the DTV signal about 309,877.6 kHz from the lower limit frequency of the television channel. Accordingly, the carrier of the DTV signal is about 2,690122.4 Hz from the middle frequency of the television channel.
The exact symbol rate in the Digital Television Standard is (684/286) times the 4.5 MHz sound carrier offset from video carrier in an NTSC analog TV signal. The number of symbols per horizontal scan line in an NTSC analog TV signal is 684, and 286 is the factor by which horizontal scan line rate in an NTSC analog TV signal is multiplied to obtain the 4.5 MHz sound carrier offset from video carrier in an NTSC analog TV signal. The symbol rate is 10.762238 megasymbols per second, which can be contained in a VSB signal extending 5.381119 MHz from DTV signal carrier. That is, the VSB signal can be limited to a band extending 5.690997 MHz from the lower limit frequency of the television channel.
The ATSC standard for digital HDTV signal terrestrial broadcasting in the United States of America is capable of transmitting either of two high-definition television (HDTV) formats with 16:9 aspect ratio. One HDTV display format uses 1920 samples per scan line and 1080 active horizontal scan lines per 30 Hz frame with 2:1 field interlace. The other HDTV display format uses 1280 luminance samples per scan line and 720 progressively scanned scan lines of television image per 60 Hz frame. The ATSC standard also accommodates the transmission of DTV display formats other than HDTV display formats, such as the parallel transmission of four television signals having normal definition in comparison to an NTSC analog television signal.
DTV transmitted by vestigial-sideband (VSB) amplitude modulation (AM) during terrestrial broadcasting in the United States of America comprises a succession of consecutive-in-time data fields each containing 313 consecutive-in-time data segments. The data fields may be considered to be consecutively numbered modulo-2, with each odd-numbered data field and the succeeding even-numbered data field forming a data frame. The frame rate is 20.66 frames per second. Each data segment is of 77.3 microseconds duration. So, with the symbol rate being 10.76 MHz there are 832 symbols per data segment. Each segment of data begins with a line synchronization code group of four symbols having successive values of +S, xe2x88x92S, xe2x88x92S and +S. The value +S is one level below the maximum positive data excursion, and the value xe2x88x92S is one level above the maximum negative data excursion. The initial line of each data field includes a field synchronization code group that codes a training signal for channel-equalization and multipath suppression procedures. The training signal is a 511-sample pseudo-noise sequence (or xe2x80x9cPN-sequencexe2x80x9d) followed by three 63-sample PN sequences. The middle ones of the 63-sample PN sequences in the field synchronization codes are transmitted in accordance with a first logic convention in the first line of each odd-numbered data field and in accordance with a second logic convention in the first line of each even-numbered data field, the first and second logic conventions being one""s complementary respective to each other.
The data within data lines are trellis coded using twelve interleaved trellis codes, each a 2/3 rate trellis code with one uncoded bit. The interleaved trellis codes are subjected to Reed-Solomon forward error-correction coding, which provides for correction of burst errors arising from noise sources such as a nearby unshielded automobile ignition system. The Reed-Solomon coding results are transmitted as 8-level (3 bits/symbol) one-dimensional-constellation symbol coding for over-the-air transmission, which transmissions are made without symbol precoding separate from the trellis coding procedure. The Reed-Solomon coding results are transmitted as 16-level (4 bits/symbol) one-dimensional-constellation symbol coding for cablecast, which transmissions are made without preceding. The VSB signals have their natural carrier wave, which would vary in amplitude depending on the percentage of modulation, suppressed.
The natural carrier wave is replaced by a pilot carrier wave of fixed amplitude, which amplitude corresponds to a prescribed percentage of modulation. This pilot carrier wave of fixed amplitude is generated by introducing a direct component shift into the modulating voltage applied to the balanced modulator generating the amplitude-modulation sidebands that are supplied to the filter supplying the VSB signal as its response. If the eight levels of 4-bit symbol coding have normalized values of xe2x88x927, xe2x88x925, xe2x88x923, xe2x88x921, +1, +3, +5 and +7 in the carrier modulating signal, the pilot carrier has a normalized value of 1.25. The normalized value of +S is +5, and the normalized value of xe2x88x92S is xe2x88x925.
In the earlier development of the DVT art it was contemplated that the DTV broadcaster might be called upon to decide whether or not to use a symbol precoder at the transmitter, which symbol precoder would follow the symbol generation circuitry and provide for matched filtering of symbols, when used together with a comb filter in each DTV signal receiver used before the data-slicer in the symbol decoder circuitry as a symbol post-coder. This decision would have depended upon whether interference from a co-channel NTSC broadcasting station were expected or not. Symbol precoding would not have been used for data line synchronization code groups or during data lines in which data field synchronization data were transmitted. Co-channel interference is reduced at greater distances from the NTSC broadcasting station(s) and is more likely to occur when certain ionospheric conditions obtain, the summertime months during years of high solar activity being notorious for likelihood of co-channel interference. Such interference will not obtain if there are no co-channel NTSC broadcasting stations, of course. If there were likelihood of NTSC interference within his area of broadcast coverage, it was presumed that the HDTV broadcaster would use the symbol precoder to facilitate the HDTV signal being more easily separated from NTSC interference; and, accordingly, a comb filter would be employed as symbol post-coder in the DTV signal receiver to complete matched filtering. If there were no-possibility of NTSC interference or there were insubstantial likelihood thereof, in order that flat spectrum noise would be less likely to cause erroneous decisions as to symbol values in the trellis decoder, it was presumed that the DTV broadcaster would discontinue using the symbol precoder; and, accordingly, the symbol post-coder would then be disabled in each DTV signal receiver.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,260,793 issued Nov. 9, 1993 to R. W. Citta et alii and entitled xe2x80x9cRECEIVER POST CODER SELECTION CIRCUITxe2x80x9d selectively employs a post-coder comb filter for suppressing NTSC interference accompanying a real or in-phase baseband component (I channel) of the complex output signal of a demodulator used in a digital high-definition television (HDTV) receiver. The presence of NTSC interference in the I-channel component of the demodulator response is detected for developing control signals automatically to enable or disable the comb filter being used for suppressing NTSC co-channel interference. During each data field sync interval, the input signal to and the output signal from an NTSC suppression filter of comb filter type in the HDTV signal receiver are each compared with a respective signal that is known a priori and is drawn from memory within the HDTV signal receiver. If the minimum result of comparison with the input signal has less energy than the minimum result of comparison with the output signal from the NTSC suppression filter, this is indicative that the primary cause of variance from expected reception is random noise rather than NTSC co-channel interference. Insofar as the particular digital television receiver is concerned. reception would be better were precoding and post-coding not employed in the system, and it is presumed that the broadcaster has not employed precoding. If the minimum result of comparison with the input signal has more energy than the minimum result of comparison with the output signal from the NTSC suppression filter, this is indicative that the primary cause of variance from expected reception is NTSC co-channel interference rather than random noise. Insofar as the particular digital television receiver is concerned, reception would be better were preceding and post-coding employed in the system, and it is presumed that the broadcaster has employed precoding.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,546,132 issued Aug. 13, 1996 to K. S. Kim et alii and entitled xe2x80x9cNTSC INTERFERENCE DETECTORxe2x80x9d describes the use of post-coder comb filtering for suppressing co-channel NTSC interference when the presence of such interference is detected in NTSC-extraction comb filter response to the I channel. U.S. Pat. No. 5,546,132 does not specifically describe an imaginary or quadrature-phase baseband component (Q channel) of a complex output signal being supplied from the demodulator used in a digital HDTV signal receiver. A digital HDTV signal receiver that synchrodynes the VSB AM signals to baseband commonly employs a demodulator that includes an in-phase synchronous detector for supplying received I-channel signal for trellis decoding (after post-coding, if precoding is used at the transmitter) and further includes a quadrature-phase synchronous detector for supplying received Q-channel signal. The received Q-channel signal is lowpass filtered to generate an automatic frequency and phase control (AFPC) signal for the local oscillator supplying carrier for synchrodyning. The specification and drawing of U.S. Pat. No. 5,479,449 issued Dec. 26, 1996 to C. B. Patel and A. L. R. Limberg, entitled xe2x80x9cDIGITAL VSB DETECTOR WITH BANDPASS PHASE TRACKER, AS FOR INCLUSION IN AN HDTV RECEIVERxe2x80x9d, and assigned to Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., is incorporated herein by reference. The reader""s attention is specifically directed to elements 22-27 in FIG. 1 of the drawing of U.S. Pat. No. 5,479,449 and the description thereof in the accompanying specification. These elements are used in the described HDTV signal receiver for carrying out complex demodulation of the VSB AM final intermediate-frequency signal. U.S. Pat. No. 5,479,449 describes complex demodulation of the VSB AM final I-F signal being carried out in the digital regime. but in alternative digital TV receiver designs complex demodulation of the VSB AM final I-F signal is instead carried out in the analog regime.
In both U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,260,793 and 5,546,132 post-coding is enabled during times of substantial co-channel NTSC interference and otherwise disabled, with the control signal for such selective enablement being developed from the received I-channel signal. The determination of co-channel NTSC interference levels is complicated by the direct bias accompanying the co-channel NTSC interference, which direct bias arises from the in-phase synchronous detection of the pilot carrier of the VSB AM DTV signal. This is particularly a problem in DTV signal receivers in which automatic gain control does not tightly regulate the amplitude of the received I-channel signal recovered by in-phase synchronous detection.
The video carrier of an NTSC signal is 1.25 MHz from edge of the 6-MHz-wide broadcast channel, while the carrier for a DTV signal for terrestrial through-the-air broadcast is 310 kHz from edge of the 6-MHz-wide broadcast channel. A co-channel NTSC signal does not exhibit symmetrical amplitude-modulation sidebands with respect to the carrier of the vestigial-sideband amplitude-modulation (VSB AM) carrying digital information. Accordingly, artifacts of the NTSC video carrier at 940 kHz remove from DTV signal carrier and artifacts of its sidebands are not well canceled in the DTV signal as synchrodyned to baseband. Nor, of course, are artifacts of the NTSC audio carrier and its sidebands, the NTSC audio carrier being at 5.44 MHz remove from DTV signal carrier.
The Digital Television Standard the ATSC published Sep. 16, 1995 does not allow for the use of precoding of all data at the DTV transmitter to compensate for post-coding incidental to subsequent use of comb filtering in a DTV signal receiver to reject NTSC co-channel interference. Instead, only the initial symbol in the trellis decoding is precoded. This procedure by itself does not facilitate a DTV signal receiver using comb filtering to reject NTSC co-channel interference before data slicing procedures are undertaken. A DTV signal receiver that does not reject artifacts of NTSC co-channel interference before data slicing procedures are undertaken will not have good reception under strong NTSC co-channel interference conditions as may be caused by the DTV signal receiver being remote from the DTV transmitter or having an analog TV transmitter very closeby. In the DTV signal as synchrodyned to baseband the artifacts of the video carrier of a co-channel interfering NTSC color TV signal are at 59.75fH, fH being the horizontal scan frequency of that signal. The artifact of the color subcarrier is at 287.25fH, and the artifact of the unmodulated NTSC audio carrier is at 345.75fH. Comb filtering procedures are not entirely satisfactory for suppressing artifacts of the frequency-modulated NTSC audio carrier, particularly under conditions of frequency modulation in which carrier frequency deviation is large, since correlation (or anti-correlation) of samples of the FM carrier at times separated by any substantial fixed delay may not be particularly good, the inventor points out. The inventor recommends that the filtering used to establish the overall bandwidth of intermediate-frequency amplification be such as to reject the FM audio carrier of any co-channel interfering NTSC analog TV signal. Comb filtering procedures are more satisfactory for separating the baseband DTV signal from the artifacts of the NTSC video carrier, the low video frequencies, and the chrominance signal frequencies close to the color carrier. This is because these artifacts tend to exhibit good correlation between samples separated by certain specific delay intervals and to exhibit good anti-correlation between samples separated by certain other specific delay intervals.
In U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/746,520 filed by the inventor on Nov. 12, 1996 and entitled xe2x80x9cDTV RECEIVER WITH FILTER IN I-F CIRCUITRY TO SUPPRESS FM SOUND CARRIER OF NTSC CO-CHANNEL INTERFERING SIGNALxe2x80x9d, the inventor advocates preceding data-slicing in a DTV signal receiver with comb filtering to suppress NTSC co-channel interference when that interference is sufficiently large as to affect data-slicing adversely. The inventor teaches how to compensate in the symbol decoding procedure for the effects of such comb filtering upon symbol coding when it is selectively done. It is, then, still useful to be able to determine when NTSC co-channel interference is larger than a prescribed value denominated as being acceptably small, so that this determination can be used for controlling the selective use of comb filtering to suppress NTSC co-channel interference.
NTSC co-channel interference will appear in the imaginary or quadrature-phase baseband component (Q channel) of the complex output signal of a demodulator used in a DTV signal receiver whenever NTSC co-channel interference appears in the real or in-phase baseband component (I channel) of that complex output signal. Accordingly, an NTSC interference detector can be arranged so that its NTSC extracting filter responds to the received Q-channel signal, rather than the received I-channel signal. By determining whether or not a significant amount of NTSC co-channel interference accompanies the received Q-channel signal, it is inferentially determined whether or not a significant amount of NTSC co-channel interference accompanies the received I-channel signal, such as to cause too many errors in the trellis decoding of equalized received I-channel signal to be corrected by the Reed-Solomon decoder following the trellis decoder. The accurate determination of co-channel NTSC interference levels is simplified. because essentially no direct bias arises from the quadrature-phase synchronous detection of the pilot carrier of the VSB AM DTV signal.
A method for processing vestigial-sideband amplitude-modulated digital television signals in a digital television signal receiver in accordance with an aspect of the invention comprises the following steps. A complex demodulation of vestigial-sideband amplitude-modulated digital television signals susceptible to co-channel NTSC interference is performed, to separate a received l-channel baseband signal and a received Q-channel baseband signal in an orthogonal relationship with said received I-channel baseband signal. Then, it is estimated whether artifacts of co-channel NTSC interference accompanying the received I-channel baseband signal are of significant level by determining whether further artifacts of co-channel NTSC interference accompanying the received Q-channel baseband signal exceed a prescribed level.
A method for determining, in accordance with an aspect of the invention, whether or not a digital television receiver is to employ comb filtering to suppress co-channel NTSC interference before trellis decoding comprises the following steps. A complex demodulation of digital television signals is performed to separate a received I-channel baseband signal and a received Q-channel baseband signal in an orthogonal relationship with the received I-channel baseband signal. Whether or not artifacts of co-channel NTSC interference that are of significant level accompany the received Q-channel baseband signal is determined. If no artifacts of co-channel NTSC interference of significant level are determined to accompany the received Q-channel baseband signal, the received I-channel baseband signal is symbol decoded without being comb filtered to generate decoded symbols for trellis decoding. If artifacts of co-channel NTSC interference of significant level are determined to accompany the received Q-channel baseband signal, the received I-channel baseband signal is comb filtered to generate comb-filtered I-channel baseband signal in which co-channel NTSC interference is suppressed, symbol decoding is performed on the comb-filtered I-channel baseband signal; and the result of symbol decoding responsive to the comb-filtered I-channel baseband signal is postcoded to generate decoded symbols for trellis decoding.
NTSC co-channel interference detectors embodying the invention in various of its aspects detect the presence of an interfering NTSC signal in the Q channel that is orthogonal to the I channel. Adaptive NTSC co-channel interference suppression circuitry embodying the invention in further of its aspects uses these NTSC co-channel interference detectors for controlling whether comb filtering is to be performed for suppressing NTSC co-channel interference in the I channel before data slicing in a digital television receiver.